Unexpected Reunion
by believer000
Summary: Emma had just moved to Boston a few month before Henry found her, following her divorce. Nobody from her old life knows where she is, but that doesn't stop her ex-husband from looking for her. When he finally finds her in Storybrooke, a place where he would have never expected her to be, things start to get messy.
1. Chapter 1

**Hi guys! So I had this idea of a crossover between House MD and Once Upon a Time in my head for a while but I decided to publish it in the Once section because I felt like more people might read it that way. Anyway, I hope if you haven't watched House this still makes sense, I tried to include the most important steps of the Cameron/Chase story so you should't have too much trouble following along. I have not written anything in advance, neither have I planned where this story will take us, so literally EVERYTHING is possible. I have changed some minor details like the age Emma had Henry, but it shouldn't matter too much.**

 **So bear with me and I hope you enjoy reading this story as much as I enjoy writing it. Reviews mean the world to me!**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own House MD or Once Upon a Time!.**

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Summary: Emma had just moved to Boston a few month before Henry found her, following her divorce. Nobody from her old life knows where she is, but that doesn't stop her ex-husband from looking for her. When he finally finds her in Storybrooke, a place where he would have never expected her to be, things start to get messy.

Chapter 1

Like almost every morning, Emma Swan was sitting at a table at Granny's, her son Henry opposite her, both of them with a steaming cup of hot chocolate with cinnamon and a plate of pancakes in front of them. Her blond hair was pulled back in a low ponytail with some loose strands framing her face.

Just a bit over a year ago, Emma would have never thought this was possible. She had never even dared thinking she would see her baby boy ever again, after giving him up shortly after he was born. At the time, Emma didn't feel ready to raise a child. She had just turned 17 and was serving time for the crimes Henry's father, Neal, committed. Now, she couldn't even imagine a life without her son anymore.

She hated herself for missing the first ten years of Henry's life, but at the time, she didn't know what else to do. But after giving birth and getting out of prison, she had turned her life around.

She had graduated from High School, moving on to attend College on a scholarship, med school and finally joined the department of diagnostic medicine of the Princeton Plainsboro Teaching Hospital in Princeton, New Jersey. Before starting her new, improved life though, she had changed her name to Allison Cameron, knowing she would not stand a chance without a family, money AND a criminal record.

In college, Allison fell in love with a dying man, and ended up marrying him just to watch him die of cancer 6 month into the marriage. After her husband's death, Allison kept her distance from relationships, figuring she was just not relationship material after Neal's betrayal and watching her husband die. She had been able to keep it up for a couple of years, until she joined Dr. House's team at Princeton Plainsboro Teaching Hospital, where she met a handsome Australian sunny boy and surgeon by the name of Robert Chase.

She didn't want to fall in love with him, it kind of just happened. She had felt a flutter in her stomach since the first moment they met, managing to keep her feelings in check for just over a year, until they had slept together while she was stoned on Crystal Meth, not one of her proud moments. Managing to keep up the façade and working with him despite their intimate encounter, she had suggested a friends with benefits relationship to him. He gladly took her offer but started falling in love with her. After their co-workers discovered their 'relationship', telling them it was affecting their professional judgement, he had suggested a real relationship but she had decided to call it off, not daring to fully commit her heart to a man again.

She tried getting over it, however Chase just kept fighting for her. She eventually gave in, after Chase had been fired from House's team and she handed in her letter of resignation, dating him for two years until he proposed. They got married a few month later and she thought she had finally gotten her life in order.

It might have worked out perfectly for them, if it hadn't been for House. They had agreed to join his team again, after his new team resigned. Shortly after, they had been assigned a new case, which was hard on both of them but Chase ended up being responsible for the death of their patient.

After that, he started changing, not coping with what he had done but failing to tell his wife of his involvement with the patient's death for months. She could see something was wrong, he started drinking and barely came home anymore, but she loved him and was determined to stand by his side. When he did tell her what he had done, she promised to stay with him and they decided to start over together in a new place. When he changed his mind, though, Allison heavy-heartedly decided she could not deal with the person he had become, so she left him behind and moved to Boston, where Henry found her and reunited her with her birth parents. He also introduced her to a whole new, magical world, she never knew existed.

It had been a shock to discover that every fairy tale she knew was actually true and that she belonged in this world, being born in the enchanted forest and being the daughter of Price Charming and Snow White. It sounded completely insane to her when Henry first tried to convince her, that this whole, magical world actually existed and that she was a part of it, but there was no doubt about that now. Together, they had restored the memories of everyone in Storybrooke, helping them remember their lives in the enchanted forest and freeing them from the curse the Evil Queen had put upon them.

Breaking the curse had reunited her with her birth parents, known as David Nolan and Mary Margarete Blanchard in this world. In the beginning, it was a bit weird for her, knowing they were her parents, as they looked about the same age as her, but she had gotten used to it by now, as had everyone in Storybrooke.

What she had not told them however, was what she had been up to in the years between Henry's birth and him finding her again. She knew being a doctor was something to be proud of but she did not want her parents or Henry to know her history with men.

Here in Storybrooke, Emma had become the Sherriff, working alongside her father David in the police department. This occupation was very different from what she was used to from her former job, but to be honest, she felt like it was a nice change.

Sometimes, it was still a bit unbelievable for her, knowing she now had a family and parents, after being completely on her own for the first 28 years of her life. She enjoyed not having to deal with things all on her own anymore, but there was still a Chase-shaped hole in her heart.

The pain felt different than the other times, with Neal, she had been angry. Angry at him for getting her pregnant, angry for sending her to jail and angry for leaving her. With her first husband, she had mostly been angry with herself. She was angry because she fell in love with him, even though she knew he was dying and she was angry, because she couldn't safe him.

This time, she didn't know who to blame as it was clear to her that Chase was not the only person responsible. Their patient had been a ruthless dictator, prepared to commit genocide and she had been thinking how easy it would be to kill him herself. Deep down, she knew she wasn't angry at Chase for killing the man, even though it sounded cruel, she was angry and hurt that he didn't seem to trust her enough to tell her what he did. At first, she was determined to make it work and to turn Chase back into the person he used to be when their met, but the final straw for her was when he chose his job over her. That was the moment she knew she had to leave.

She still missed him but now, she didn't regret leaving him, seeing as she would have never found her family if she had stayed and lived her life as Allison Cameron.

"What's up mom, what are you thinking about?" Henry asked curiously, seeing as she was staring out of the window, clearly lost in her thoughts.

"Nothing, kid, just happy to have you here with me." She smiled at him and took as sip of her hot chocolate.

"I'm glad to have you here to, mom." He smiled back and they both started digging into their stacks of pancakes.

Emma was silently reprimanding herself to stop thinking of her life with Chase and they were almost finished with their breakfast when the door opened and a man with short blond hair walked in. He looked slightly lost, obviously new in town and just stood in the doorway for a moment, carefully eyeing his surroundings.

Emma turned around, expecting a familiar face of one of the town's people. When her gaze fell onto the man who just walked in, she was blown away. She quickly turned around, hoping he didn't see her.

She knew it was silly, Storybrooke was not the place for tourists and her ex-husband was not one to take vacations in sleepy small towns, which meant he definitely had some other business here, so as town sheriff, she would run into him sooner or later anyway.

"Do you know that guy, mom?" Henry asked curiously, noticing her reaction. "He is definitely new in town."

"Nope, never seen him before." Emma lied. Well, technically it wasn't a lie she tried to convince herself. Henry's MOTHER didn't know the man, Allison Cameron however knew that man very well.

She couldn't believe he was really here, in Storybrooke of all places. It was hard to believe it was a coincidence he was here, but she knew if he was here to find her, he would have paid more attention to the people in the room. And if he did that, he would have spotted her for sure.

"Can I go say hello, mom? Welcome him to Storybrooke?" Henry asked.

"No kid, leave the man some privacy. We don't even know if he's staying yet and if he is, we should allow him some space to settle in." Emma tried to reason and she could tell Henry wasn't happy. She knew he was curious to find out what took the stranger to Storybrooke but she couldn't risk Henry talking to Chase just yet. She wasn't ready to face that kind of obstacle, yet.

Henry was about to protest when the men grabbed the coffee he must have ordered and headed out of the diner. Henry knew it was probably too strange to run after him, so he decided to leave it at that and postpone his welcome to their next encounter.

Emma was relieved when she heard him leaving the diner, what she didn't know however was, that Chase stopped dead in his tracks when a familiar face caught his sight though the window of the diner. Like he was possessed he turned around and headed back into the diner straight to the table where she was sitting with a dark haired boy. He stepped into her sight and whispered. "Allison?", not sure of what else to say.

Her eyes widened and she just stared at him for a moment. She could feel Henry's puzzled glance on her, but she just looked at Chase.

"Robert." She whispered back and they just stared at each other for what felt like an eternity.

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 _Next chapter will be Chase's POV, so you will find out what took him to Storybrooke! Also Emma and Chase will have a conversation!_

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Please review!


	2. Chapter 2

**So here goes Chapter 2, this was so much fun to write, I just love stuff like this and I'm glad you enjoy the House/Once Upon a Time Crossover idea! Thank you for all those who reviewed, please do keep it up, you make my day and make me want to write faster! For those of you who watch House: I know Thirteen and Chase aren't very close, but I kind of like their chemistry, so she will probably make an appearance every once in a while and find her way to Storybrooke at some point.**

 **I hope the whole name thing with Allison/Emma/Cameron is not too confusing, I apologize if it doesn't make sense and please tell me if you find it annoying!**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own House MD or Once Upon a Time!**

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Chapter 2

Cameron had been right all along. It took him a while to realize it but now it was all clear. The job with House had changed him, and certainly not for the better. It took him a while to realize that but House really was a bad influence on him. But it was too late now. He had lost her and would probably never see her again. And even if he did, they would never get back what they once had. It pained him to think like that, but he knew he had to be realistic. He had tried to contact her, tried to find her to apologize and tell her he wanted to work things ouz, but it was like she had dropped off the face of the earth. To him it was clear that she didn't want to be found. That didn't keep him from trying, but it has been over a year, he knew he couldn't put his life on hold forever, so he did the only thing he could think of: start over.

It was what they had intended to do together, start over, but it was for his stupidity that they never got the chance to. Because he changed his mind. He decided to keep his job and stay with House. Now he had to take the consequences.

Now he had to do it on his own, but he really did want to do it. Because Cameron was right, House had changed him and he wanted to go back to the person he once where when they first met, despite the fact that he could not have her anymore.

So he handed in his resignation and started looking for a new job in a new town. That is what brought him to Storybrooke. He felt immediately drawn to the place, even though he had no idea why, but when he heard there was an open spot in the ER of the Storybrooke Hospital he jumped at the chance and applied. Fast forward a week and a half, he had the position in the ER under his belt and had rented a small apartment right in the town center of Storybrooke, only three walking minutes away from Granny's diner, where he started getting his coffee every morning.

Working in the ER reminded him of Allison, as she had been working the exact same position at PPTH for over two years when they were dating, after she had resigned from House's team. It should be a painful reminder, but it felt strangely good, like a tribute to the love of his life.

He hadn't told House or Foreman where he was going, he knew what they would say. That working in the ER was below him, that he was only doing this to feel close to Cameron instead of moving on as he should be, seeing as he was a skilled surgeon. The only person he had voluntarily told where he was headed was Remy "Thirteen" Hadley, who had strangely become a close friend of his. Cuddy knew too, of course, but mainly because she was the one who had to write him a letter of recommendation to enable him to apply for this new job. She had been a good friend of Cameron and Chase, but he had started distancing himself from her after the divorce. She had been glad to hear he was turning his life around, though.

He would have never thought Remy could be that understanding, but it turned out she had been the only person he felt like he could talk to about his failed marriage, without any judgement, seeing as they both had a lot of baggage from their pasts.

He had just finished talking to Remy on the phone, filling her in on his first days of work and his new small town life when he headed into the diner to get his usual coffee.

He was still a bit insecure and shortly stopped in the doorway every day to look around the diner before heading for the counter to get his coffee. The diner was never very crowded. Today he saw a boy of about ten to eleven years and a blonde woman with a ponytail in a red leather jacket, who had her back turned at him.

Her hair reminded him of Cameron, but he knew she would never wear a leather jacket like the woman at the table was, not to mention the tight black jeans and knee high boots. He had to suppress a smirk, thinking of just how much he would have liked to see Allison in clothes like that.

He stepped to the counter and greeted Granny with a polite smile.

"The usual?" she asked.

"Yes, please." He replied, smiling as she already remembered his order after his third time getting coffee here.

She smiled as she handed him his cup and he paid and headed out of the diner, not without shooting a last glance at the blonde's back, who was just saying something to the boy. He was a bit earlier than usual, so he figured he could take his time walking to the hospital.

He was just walking past the window of Granny's when he could catch a sight at the blonde's face through the window. He stopped still, in utter shock. She was talking and smiling at the boy, not noticing him staring at her through the window.

Like another power took control over his body, he turned around and headed back into the diner, straight to the table where the blonde was sitting with the dark haired boy.

There was absolutely no doubt about it: this woman was Allison, unless she had an identical twin sister she failed to tell him about. Judging by the shocked look she was giving him when he stepped into her sight and looked her in the eyes, she did not have a twin sister, it was definitely her.

"Allison." He whispered, not believing what was right be his eyes. There was a short silence, until she caught her breath and whispered back "Robert."

They boy looked completely confused. When no one spoke and they just continued to stare at each other, Henry broke the silence.

"Mom, who is this? I thought you didn't know him."

"Mom?" Chase repeated, as if he was trying to comprehend the word.

"Urm…Henry, this is Robert Chase, an old…friend." Emma stuttered, struggling to find the right words.

"And Robert, this is Henry…my…son." She tried her best to keep her voice steady, figuring there was no use in not introducing Henry as her son, considering he had just called her 'mom' anyway.

She wanted to say something else but she didn't know what, so she just kept staring at him, not able to take her eyes of this once so familiar man.

After a moment Henry said "Hi Robert, why don't you sit down and finish your coffee with us. You are new in Storybrooke, arent's you?"

Robert sat down and replied "Yes, I'm new here. I work at the hospital in the Emergency Room." Throwing a hint at Allison, looking directly at her. When she couldn't take his intense glare anymore, she took her half full cup of hot chocolate in both hands and stared down the cup. Chase however did not miss the slight smile that showed up on her face when he mentioned his new job.

"So, how do you know my mom?" Henry asked bluntly. He was definitely not one to beat around the bush for very long.

"Like your… mom said, we are old friends." Chase said carefully after thinking for a moment. Emma didn't have to shoot him a look for him to know that he couldn't just throw the truth at Henry. They did have to talk first. "From New Jersey." He added.

"I didn't know you lived in New Jersey, mom." Henry stated.

Emma looked up slightly. "Yeah, I lived there for a couple of years actually. Before I moved to Boston." She explained. She looked at the watch on her wrist, relieved by the time it showed.

"You should go, Henry. Your bus leaves in 5 minutes." Henry looked disappointed, clearly curious for more. He got up and started gathering his things, putting on his jacket and backpack. Emma got up as well, pulling Henry into an embrace.

"Have a good day at school, kid." She said.

"Thanks, mom." Henry said and headed out of the door. Emma sat back down, well aware of the intense stare from Chase he was still shooting her.

"Thanks for not telling him." She said.

"You do have a bit of explaining to do, Allison" He stated and guilt flashed on her face.

"I know." She replied. "But not here and not now. It's a long story and you probably have to get to work soon." She saw the disappointed look on his face.

"You can meet me tonight at the shipyard. We can talk there in private. Let's say at eight?" She added.

"Can you leave Henry alone at that time?" Chase asked a bit confused, raising an eyebrow.

"I can get someone to take care of him." Emma answered simply.

"Alright. Just tell me, is he really your son? Biologically, I mean? I don't think I'll be able to concentrate on work today if you don't tell me." Chase rambled.

"Yes, he is." Emma confirmed, spotting disappointment on his face. It was understandable, though. He thought he knew her and now it turned out she kept the fact that she had a son from him.

"But it is a bit more complicated than that, Robert. I was very young and in a bad place at that time. I will explain everything tonight, I promise." She really didn't want him to hate her. If he lived in this town, she wanted them to be friends, even though she knew it wouldn't be a good idea to start anything more than a friendship, considering how their marriage had turned out. Then again, when he found out everything she kept from him, he would probably never be able to trust her again, so she probably wouldn't have to worry, anyway.

"Please just promise you'll hear me out." She pleaded. "I just hope you won't think I'm crazy when I tell you the full story. It is all very unbelievable but I won't lie to you, I promise. I only just found out most of this stuff after I left Princeton anyway."

"I promise, I won't judge, I just want to understand." Chase promised. It was an understatement to say he was excited and nervous to hear her story, but he would have to wait until later that day, if he wanted to or not. He knew he wouldn't tell her more now and she was right, he did have to get to work.

"Thank you." She smiled. "I go by Emma here, by the way." She blurted out.

"Excuse me" THAT was even more confusing for him. Why would she be going by another name? Did "he even know this woman anymore?

"Well, I just thought you should know. Allison is the name I took after I had Henry." She explained. She saw the curious look on his face and knew he was about to ask but she cut him off. "Again, I will explain tonight."

"Alright. Just tell me one more thing. What are you doing for a living here? I'm pretty sure we would have run into each other at the hospital if you were working there." Chase asked curiously.

"You're right, I'm not a doctor anymore. I'm actually the sheriff." She confused, looking down a bit embarrassed.

He couldn't help but to start laughing. To everyone else in town it didn't seem that strange for Emma to be the sheriff but Chase knew the other her and he definitely couldn't picture her as Sheriff. Then again, her clothes were a lot more badass than he would ever be able to imagine Allison Cameron wearing.

"You're the Sherriff?"

"Well, yeah…" she didn't know what else to say.

Chase took a look at his watch.

"Well, Sheriff, looks like I do have to go to work now." He got up from his chair. She got up a bit reluctantly, too, not sure how to say goodbye to him. "I have to go to work, too" she said.

They walked out of the door together, parting ways when they reached the main street. They stood in front of each other awkwardly for a moment, before Chase decided to pull her into a hug.

He took her by surprise, but she had to admit it felt good to be back in his arms.

Their embrace lasted a bit longer than necessary, but if it was up to them, it would last forever, not that either one of them would have admitted it at this point. There was definitely still chemistry between them, but they definitely had to clear the air between them before anything could happen again. If anything SHOULD happen again.

"See you tonight?" he half stated, half asked.

"Yep." She simply confirmed and they both headed off, in opposite directions, both lost in thought. It was safe to say it was going to be a long day for both of them. Emma was nervous to tell the whole truth to Chase and Chase was anxious to hear what else she had to tell him. He knew he should be angry at her for keeping the fact she had a child from him, but somehow he sensed there was something more to the story, that would make him understand her motives.

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 _Next chapter will be the talk, obviously, so be exited. I am for sure!_


	3. Chapter 3

**Welcome back guys! I hope you enjoy this first real talk, one of many to come cause these two still have a lot of catching up to do. I also wanted to announce I am going to slow down uploads a bit, as I feel like many people do are too busy during the week to read fanfiction, so updates are probably going to come saturdays and sundays. That also gives me a bit of time to write in advance, as I have finished school already and have a lot of time at the moment:D**

 **Please do keep your reviews up and please tell me what you would like to happen in this story. I was a bit disappointed to see I only got two reviews for the last chapter, but then again, you guys are probably busy.**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own House or OUAT. Wish I was cool like that though!**

Chapter 3

To say she was nervous when she saw him approaching would be the understatement of the year. She had no idea how he would react to this crazy story, and at this point, she didn't know if she wanted to find out. But she knew there was no point in trying to lie to him. She had no intention of hurting him again, she really did want to work things out with him, but that started with telling him the truth. The whole truth, curses, evil queens, Prince Charming, Snow White and the enchanted forest included. There were only two ways this could go: he would believe her and everything would be fine, or he could think she was completely crazy and try to run. In that case, she would have to prove to him that she was telling the truth, which was only possible by showing him her magic. This was certainly not going to be easy.

He pulled her into another hug to greet her, nervous of what she was going to tell him.

"Hey there." He whispered.

"Hey." She replied, breaking the hug and leading him to one of the benches, silently sitting down and waiting for him to do the same. He took a seat next to her. "So?" he asked. Seeing the nervous look on her face he added: "Promise still stands. I will listen to the full story and I won't judge you."

She took a deep breath and started:

"Alright, so as you know, I grew up in the system. When I was about 15, I ran away from my foster family, and started living on the streets, steeling food and anything else I needed to survive.

About a year after I ran away, I wanted to steal a car. A yellow beetle. I knew exactly how to do it, I learned a lot by living on the streets for a year. When I drove off, a man suddenly appeared on the backseat, just casually offering me the keys. I thought he was the owner of the car, but it turned out he had just stolen it himself as well. Eventually, I fell in love with him as we were committing all sorts of crimes together. It all went well for a while, until he confessed a robbery of very expensive watches to me. We wanted to start over together, so I agreed to get the watches, which were hidden in a locker of a train station, as no one would suspect what I was up to. So I got the watches, but a while later I was arrested and sentences to 10 months in jail. It wasn't until then that I found out I was pregnant. An abortion was not an option, so I decided to give up my baby boy after he was born. I thought it was the right thing to do, as I couldn't give him a proper future but after I was released from jail, I decided to turn my life around.

I knew, I wouldn't stand a chance as a criminal orphan, so I became Allison Cameron. I got my degree and eventually made it into House's team.

After our divorce, I moved to Boston. This is where Henry found me. One night, he just showed up on my doorstep and insisted I was his mother. I took him back here and he managed to convince me to stay. His teacher, Mary Margarete, had given him a storybook. He was convinced all the characters from the book were real and living in Storybrooke, not remembering their pasts in the enchanted forest because of a curse the Evil Queen cast." At this point, Emma giggled nervously. Hearing the words flooding out of her mouth, she knew she wouldn't believe the story if it was told to her. But Chase only continued to look at her, waiting for her to continue.

To him, it sounded completely ridiculous, but he managed to keep a straight face, encouraging to continue.

"He also believed I was meant to be the savior, possessing strong magic, being the product of true love, daughter of Prince Charming and Snow White, destined to free the people of Storybrooke from the Evil Queen's curse. I know, this sounds completely ridiculous, I certainly thought Henry just had a wild imagination and I didn't believe any of it.

To add to all this craziness, Henry's adopted mother, Regina, who is also the mayor of Storybrooke, turned out to be the Evil Queen, doing anything in her power to get rid of me and stop us from breaking the curse, so she could have Henry to herself.

We ended up succeeding in breaking the curse, so now everyone in Storybrooke remembers their pasts. My parents, David and Mary Margret, as they are called in this world reunited and we really started becoming a family. It was weird at first, they look about the same age as me, but I think everyone has gotten used to it by now." She inhaled sharply and quickly added: "I know, this sounds insane, but it is the truth."

Chase looked lost in thought for a moment, before asking: "So, you are telling me you have magical powers and are the daughter of Prince Charming and Snow White?"

"Yes, I am not always in control of my powers, but I do have them." She couldn't read his expression at all.

"Can you show me?" she certainly didn't expect that.

"Erm…Sure." She stuttered. She opened up her hand with a little twist and a medium sized fireball appeared, dancing about an inch above her palm. With another twist, she threw the fireball at the ocean and it appeared into the darkness, sliding over the blank surface of the water.

"Wow…" Chase didn't know what else to say.

"Does that mean you believe me?" Emma asked.

"It all sounds really crazy, but after I just saw, I think I do believe you. Although it will probably take some time for me to comprehend this completely. And I have met the mayor briefly when I arrived, she does have a bit of an Evil Queen vibe surrounding her." Chase responded after thinking for a moment, grinning at his last statement about Regina.

"She actually isn't all bad." Emma said thoughtfully. "I have come to understand her motives to a certain extent after learning her story, even understanding her hatred for my mother. And she has actually become sort of a friend to me and my family, after they started working out all the faults from the past. We even agreed to share Henry's custody, because I know how much she sacrificed for him and how much she loves him."

"So why DID the Evil Queen hate Snow White so much?" he asked curiously.

"Well, the darkness actually came from her mother, Cora. She forced Regina to marry the King, my grandfather, after my grandmother died. They met when Regina rescued my mother when she was in a riding accident as a young girl. Regina desperately didn't want to marry the king, but her mother insisted, wanting to see her daughter be queen. Regina, however, was in love with a stable boy, they wanted to run away together, because it was their only way for them to be together. My mother, though, wanted Regina to become her new mother, not knowing how unhappy Regina was about marrying the king. Regina explained to Snow why she had to leave her, so she could be with her true love, and my mother, believing in the best in people, told this story to her father. This is how Cora learned of Regina's intentions and just before they were ready to leave, she stopped them, killing Daniel, Regina's love. A while later, Regina learned how her mother got to know what she was up to and started blaming Snow for Daniel's death, swearing she would avenge his death." Emma explained.

"So, do I get to know your infamous parents?" Chase questioned.

"If you want to." Emma replied, slightly nervous. As exactly what would she introduce him? "I will probably need some time to prep them for the news, though. I have not exactly told them about my life as Allison Cameron."

"Why not? You have done so many good things as a doctor, Allison. Why wouldn't you tell them about what you achieved?" he wanted to know.

"I guess after the divorce, it was just too painful to talk about it, and we had so many crazy things to deal with, so that it just never came up." Emma explained. She didn't correct him on the name, though, knowing she would probably always be Allison to him.

"You know, if you want to, we can tell them our story together." He offered, smiling at her. She raised an eyebrow.

"Robert, what is it exactly what we are doing? I mean, where do we want to go with this? You know…us" Emma asked. She just HAD to know. She knew she still loved him and never go over the divorce, but after all she had told him, she was sure he wouldn't want her anymore. She must seem like a whole different person to him.

"Honestly, I don't know. I have a lot to process but I know that I don't want to forget what we had." He answered. "It is probably too early to jump into another relationship, I will have to get to know the new you and your family first, but I know I don't want to let you out of my life again. I only realized too late that you were right and I needed a fresh start. Now that I have you back, I won't let you go again, even if we can only be friends."

"Friends sounds good for now." Emma smiled at him.

"So are you going to tell Henry how we really know each other? I have a feeling, the boy won't just let you off the hook with the 'we're old friends' story." Chase asked seriously.

"I will tell him, soon. I know he will be thrilled when I do. He has been trying to find a love interest for me." Emma laughed. "And when he knows, he will probably do everything he can to get us back together. I could tell he liked you"

"Well that's good to know." Chase chuckled. He was relieved she agreed to tell Henry the truth as well, proving her intentions on fixing things with him were genuine. They continued to chat about some light stuff until Emma checked the time and stated: "I should probably get going now. I have to get up early with Henry tomorrow."

"Yeah, I should go to. Have to be at the hospital at 8:30 tomorrow morning." Chase agreed. "When will I see you again?"

"I will tell Henry tomorrow, so maybe you could come over tomorrow evening so I can introduce you to my parents?" Emma suggested, not sure if she was maybe rushing things a bit too much.

"That'll work." Chase replied and Emma got up. Chase followed her lead and they walked side by side silently until they had to part ways to get to their respective homes.

Emma pulled him into a hug to say goodbye, following his lead from this morning. He blew a light kiss to her cheek and they parted ways, both going home, thinking about one another, wondering how this would work out.

* * *

 _Next chapter, Emma and Henry will have a talk. It is all written already, but like I said, update is going to come on Saturday! See you then!_

* * *

 _ **Reviews? Pretty please :)**_


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

The next day, Emma picked up Henry after school. They didn't have enough time in the morning after Emma, lost in thought, had forgotten to set her alarm, which resulted in them sleeping in way too late, leaving them in a hurry to make it to school and work on time.

Henry greeted her with a hug. "Hey there, kid." She smiled. She couldn't even imagine a life without her son anymore, even though just a year ago, he had been a stranger. She knew she owed it all to him, thanks to him, she had a family now. A mother, a father and her son.

They headed to the park and found a bench to sit on. She had told Henry in the morning she would be picking him up after school because she had something important to tell him, so he wasn't completely clueless.

Henry, of course, already suspected the 'important news' Emma had to tell him involved the man they briefly met at the diner yesterday, even though she hadn't been more specific.

He had spent some time with his grandparents the previous night, because Emma had some 'important errands' to run. He didn't know exactly what was up, but when she had returned home, she acted unusually chipper.

Mary Margret had noticed this too, but when she asked Emma about it, she just shrugged it off, telling her mother she was just in a good mood.

Henry had decided against telling his grandparents about their encounter with Chase at Granny's, figuring he had to find out more about his mother's 'old friend' first.

"So, what's up, mom?" Henry asked curiously.

"Okay, so I know you are dying to hear this, we're here because I want to tell you the truth about Robert." Emma started.

"You know that you were born while I was in prison. It broke my heart to give you up, but I was convinced I couldn't give you a proper future, without money. There were no prospects for us, I hadn't even graduated from High School, so I knew I would never have a fighting chance for a proper job that could provide for the both of us. When I gave you up, I promised myself I would turn my life around once I got out of jail and I did. I got a new identity, Allison Cameron, because my criminal record would have prevented me from getting a scholarship for college or even a proper job for the matter.

Anyway, I graduated from High School, went to college on a scholarship and eventually went to med school. I had to work my butt off for all of that, but in the end, I did it. After graduating, I ended up at Princeton Plainsboro Teaching Hospital, on the Team for Diagnostic Medicine. This is where I met Chase, he was on the team, too. Initially, I had a crush on Dr. House, looking back now, it was pretty hilarious, we even went on a monster truck date once." She laughed, remembering how much she enjoyed that evening.

"But of course, nothing became of that. House was too old for me, yet he acted like a toddler most of the time. Robert and I started casually dating after about two and a half years of being on the team together, but when our co-workers found out about us, they kept telling us our relationship was affecting our professional judgement, so I broke it off. Chase kept fighting for me, though, and we started dating for real when he was fired by House, for reasons I still don't understand.

I ended up resigning from the team, too, and started working in the ER of the hospital, while Chase started working as a surgeon again. He proposed after two years of dating and we got married a few month later.

We were really happy, until House asked us to join his team again and we accepted. We thought it was amazing to be working together again, until that one case came around.

We had to diagnose an African dictator who was responsible for the death of thousands of people, which was hard for the both of us. I kept thinking how easy it would be to just stop this man from killing anyone else, but in the end, it was Robert who was responsible for his death. He deliberately caused it, but that wasn't the worst part for me.

He kept it from me for months, having one of our co-workers help him cover up the evidence, but he changed after the incident, not able to live with the thought of having killed a patient. He barely came home anymore and started drinking. When he did tell me what he did, we agreed we had to start over, but he changed his mind last minute and I couldn't handle it anymore.

So I decided to leave and move to Boston. I returned to Princeton once again to get the divorce finalized and Robert and I parted on good terms, I guess.

He continued working with House for the past year, but realized he needed a change, so he moved here. He didn't know he would find me here. He had been trying to contact me, but of course there was no way of finding me, as I went by my old name again."

"Wow, you were married!" Henry exclaimed. So he WAS right. There was a lot more going on between his mother and Chase.

"Actually, I was married more than once. When I was in college, I fell in love with a guy and we ended up getting married, but he died six month later. He had cancer. I was so hurt after that, which is probably why it took Robert and I so long to start a relationship." Emma laughed bitterly.

"I'm sorry, mom." Henry felt slightly guilty, even though he couldn't possibly have known.

"Aw kid, I got over that a long time ago and you couldn't have known!" Emma said.

"So what's up with you and Robert now? Are you guys getting back together?" Henry asked curiously.

"Well I guess that's a bit early to tell, kid. We only just reunited and I just told him the whole story about my past and my origin last night. He was understanding and he believed me, but I am a whole different person than I used to be as a doctor. But he said he wants to get to know the new me." Emma explained.

"So you still have feelings for him." Henry stated.

"Yeah, I know I do, and I also know the decision to start over has changed him. He seems more like his old self than he has in years and I'm starting to recognize the person I fell in love with again. But it would be wrong to rush into things, he will need a lot of getting used to all the craziness in Storybrooke, with magic, heroes and villain around every cornor. I am going to introduce him to mom and dad tonight, though. I think it's time to finally come clean about my past with them." Emma said. Just thinking about her parents meeting Chase caused her stomach to turn, but she knew she had to introduce them.

"I saw the way he looked at you, mom. I know you two WILL get back together at one point. If he believed all the stories surrounding Storybrooke and can stand them without running, he really does love you." Henry said.

Emma knew he was right. It did take a lot to put up with all the mystical stuff and it required strong motivation to voluntarily commit yourself to them, so Chase certainly had a VERY good motive, which could only be her, as he knew nobody else in town yet.

Emma also knew she definitely wanted to get back together with Robert, which made it just so much harder to not just jump him instantly, as they had done in the past. It had not been appropriate to tell Henry their relationship had started out with casual sex, considering he was only eleven years old, so she carefully let this part out.

But it was true. Sex was kind of the thing that bonded them together, there had always been an unmistakable passion that neither of them could deny. It sounded superficial, but it really wasn't. There were strong feelings involved, sex was just their way of expressing that.

It had started out as casual sex but quickly developed into so much more, even though she failed to see that for a while. Even when she returned to get his signature on the divorce papers, sex was their way of saying goodbye.

So it only made sense to her to fall right back into old habits, but she also knew this time it wasn't the way to go. She knew they had to take things slow, make sure what he was getting himself into, especially considering she had Henry now.

She couldn't risk jumping into another relationship now, when she wasn't certain it was going to last. Henry deserved better than that. The only thing worse than not having a father is losing one, so she wanted to make sure Chase was getting to know her family properly, before they started anything again.

It was going to be hard, but she had to handle this right.

Also, she had to remember that a lot can happen in a year. Just as she had been completely honest with Chase about what happened during their year apart, he had to do the same. It might not have been as spectacular and unbelievable, considering she knew life on House's team well, but she knew they both had to open up about their feelings, if this was ever going to work.

If she was being completely honest, she was also kind of dying to know what happened in Princeton after she left. She knew she still cared for all the people she had worked with during her years as a diagnostician and leaving had been harder on her than she anticipated.

The team had been her family and it had been the first time in her life that she didn't feel all alone, so they were always going to hold a special place in her heart.


	5. Chapter 5

p style="font-family: -webkit-standard; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"It was almost six at night and Emma was waiting anxiously for Chase to arrive. She had told her parents they were expecting company for dinner and Mary Margaret and David where curious to meet this mystery man that seemed to have put a smile on their daughters face. Emma had refused to tell them anything in advance, though, insisting they would find out soon enough./p  
p style="font-family: -webkit-standard; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"Henry had agreed to stay at Regina's for the night and Regina had been thrilled she got to spend some more time with Henry, seeing as she hadn't seen him as much as she wanted to during the last couple of weeks./p  
p style="font-family: -webkit-standard; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"When the doorbell rang, Emma jumped up from her seat on the couch and opened, giving Chase a light, quick hug and asking him inside. Her mother was still in the kitchen, preparing their dinner but her dad had sat in the living room with her before Chase arrived and hadn't moved from his seat when Emma went to open the door./p  
p style="font-family: -webkit-standard; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"Emma gently pulled Chase into the apartment, towards her father. David got up./p  
p style="font-family: -webkit-standard; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;""Dad, this is Robert Chase. Robert, this is my dad, David Nolan." Emma introduced./p  
p style="font-family: -webkit-standard; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;""Nice to meet you." Chase said politely, holding out his hand for David to shake. David gave his hand a firm squeeze and replied: "It is nice to meet you, too, Robert. You're the first man our daughter is introducing us to." He grinned at Emma who blushed slightly in return./p  
p style="font-family: -webkit-standard; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"Right then, Mary Margaret appeared, having heard the voices in the living room and eying Chase curiously./p  
p style="font-family: -webkit-standard; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;""Mom, this is Robert Chase and Robert, this is my mom, Mary Margaret Blanchard." They shook hands as well. Mary Margaret announced dinner would still take a little while longer, so they all settled down on the couch./p  
p style="font-family: -webkit-standard; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;""So, I told you guys I needed to tell you something important and since that involves Robert as well, I have asked him here tonight." Emma opened, continuing to tell her parents of what happened after Henry was born. She told them about changing her name and starting over, about her time in High School, College and Med School and finally about being a doctor at the Princeton Plainsboro Teaching hospital. When they reached the Princeton part of the story, Chase jumped in occasionally, helping out with the story. She told them about falling in love when she was in college, meeting Chase and everything else she thought was important. She even told them about the brief crush she had had on House, causing her and Robert to giggle uncontrollably, thinking back to how she had acted and how jealous he had been of House./p  
p style="font-family: -webkit-standard; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"When they finished, her parents looked stunned./p  
p style="font-family: -webkit-standard; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;""Emma, honey, why haven't you told us you were a doctor? You almost seem like you're embarrassed of your past, were you should actually be really proud of yourself!" Mary Margaret said proudly and utterly amazed./p  
p style="font-family: -webkit-standard; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;""Well, I guess during all this madness here in Storybrooke, it never really came up. And I was still getting over the divorce, so I didn't really want to talk about it either." Emma explained./p  
p style="font-family: -webkit-standard; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;""So Robert, what brought you to Storybrooke?" David asked curiously. "We don't really get many strangers here."/p  
p style="font-family: -webkit-standard; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;""Well, I realized I needed a change, I wanted to get away from House and his insane work ethics and I found out there was a spot in the ER available here, so I applied. I didn't even know Ally was here, it was really just coincidence that we ran into each other now." Chase told him, not noticing he was still calling Emma Ally, but it had always been his nickname for her, everyone else was always calling her Allison or Cameron, and no one bothered to correct him. As a matter of fact, Emma kind of always liked that nickname and didn't mind him calling her by it at all./p  
p style="font-family: -webkit-standard; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;""I have always been a firm believer in fate." David smiled, giving Emma and Chase an suggestive look while Mary Margaret checked her watch before she got up and said: "Dinner should be ready, you can all go ahead and sit down at the table," before she headed to the kitchen to get her famous lasagna out of the stove./p  
p style="font-family: -webkit-standard; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"After dinner was served and everyone dug in hungrily, she received a lot of praise for the meal. Emma and Chase had started chatting about some old cases after Mary Margaret and David had shared some of their adventures from the enchanted forest, trying to explain particularly memorable cases to Emma's parents, who both looked more than just a little confused about most of the stuff that was talked about./p  
p style="font-family: -webkit-standard; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"Despite not understanding half of the things Emma and Chase tried to explain to them, Mary Margaret and David felt pride raising in their chests for just how smart and skilled their daughter seemed to be and for how many lives she had saved as a doctor./p  
p style="font-family: -webkit-standard; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"At some point, they had gotten out a bottle of wine, continuing to share old stories until Chase began talking about some of the more recent cases. Then Chase started telling them about the time House was babysitting Rachel and she swallowed a coin, causing House to act more than a bit strange to prevent Cuddy from finding out./p  
p style="font-family: -webkit-standard; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;""Why would House be babysitting Cuddy's daughter?" Emma asked a confused and Chase innerly head-slapped himself. He had completely failed to tell Emma about House' and Cuddy's new relationship./p  
p style="font-family: -webkit-standard; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;""Right, I completely forgot to tell you but House and Cuddy…they are kind of…together now, I guess." Chase said and Emma nearly swallowed on her wine./p  
p style="font-family: -webkit-standard; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;""House and Cuddy? No way! I never thought she would ever give into him!" Emma exclaimed. "They seem to be pretty serious as well if Cuddy trusts House with Rachel. He is not exactly the friendly uncle type…" she added./p  
p style="font-family: -webkit-standard; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;""I guess they are." Chase replied thoughtfully. "You should have seen them in the beginning. House was bursting with pride and Cuddy was so paranoid everyone was going to think she would grant House outrageous procedures for patients because he was her boyfriend." Chase laughed. "It was pretty hilarious, to be honest."/p  
p style="font-family: -webkit-standard; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;""I can imagine." Emma said, suddenly missing her crazy family at PPTH. Maybe she and Chase could go back at some point, just to visit, of course. "So, anything else I missed?"/p  
p style="font-family: -webkit-standard; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;""Well, Remy and Foreman decided to give it another go, after he apologized like a million times." Chase stated./p  
p style="font-family: -webkit-standard; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;""Remy? Since when do you call her that?" Emma asked./p  
p style="font-family: -webkit-standard; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;""Well, we actually became pretty good friends, so it became kind of weird calling her Thirteen." Chase explained./p  
p style="font-family: -webkit-standard; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;""How is she anyway? Has she developed any further symptoms yet?" Emma asked, talking about the rare genetic disorder, Huntington's chorea, Remy suffered from./p  
p style="font-family: -webkit-standard; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;""No, she hasn't. She actually started taking care of herself again, determined to push back the disease as far as possible. But her brother recently died of it." Chase said sadly causing a sad look on Emma's face, too./p  
p style="font-family: -webkit-standard; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"They were so indulged in their conversation now, that neither of them noticed Mary Margaret and David had relocated to the living room./p  
hr style="color: #000000; font-family: -webkit-standard; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;" noshade="noshade" size="1" /  
p style="font-family: -webkit-standard; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;""There is so much we missed." Mary Margaret stated sadly./p  
p style="font-family: -webkit-standard; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;""Oh yeah, there is." David agreed. "But I am so proud of our little girl. And you shouldn't blame yourself, Mary Margaret, there was no other choice for us at the time. And we have her back now." He added, reading his wife's face perfectly and gently pulling his arms around her shoulders, holding her tight./p  
p style="font-family: -webkit-standard; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;""She still loves him." Mary Margaret suddenly changed the subject. "Just look how happy she is since he arrived."/p  
p style="font-family: -webkit-standard; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;""He seems to be a good man. He has made mistakes in the past, but it is very obvious he still loves her, too. I'm sure they will work out there problems and find their way back to each other eventually. I know our little girl will finally find her happy ending." David smiled./p  
p style="font-family: -webkit-standard; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;""Just like us." Mary Margaret said lovingly. "Sometimes, I still can't believe we finally have her back and here with us. After all these years, everything is finally falling into place."/p  
hr style="color: #000000; font-family: -webkit-standard; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;" noshade="noshade" size="1" /  
p style="font-family: -webkit-standard; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"It was well past midnight when Chase realized he should probably get going. Mary Margaret and David had already gone to bed, but Emma was still wide awake. When Chase announced he should probably go home, she offered to walk him home, insisting she could use some fresh air. He told her he could manage on his own, but stubborn as she was, she decided to join him on his way home anyway./p  
p style="font-family: -webkit-standard; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;""You know, usually a gentleman walks his date to her door." Chase stated when they headed out of the building, towards his own apartment./p  
p style="font-family: -webkit-standard; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;""Since when do I give a crap about traditions?" Emma asked mockingly. "And what makes you believe this was a date." She grinned cheekily./p  
p style="font-family: -webkit-standard; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;""Well, I met your parents, which is kind of a big deal." Chase rambled. "So this wasn't a date?" he asked, disappointed./p  
p style="font-family: -webkit-standard; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;""Of course it was, silly. I was just mocking you." Emma laughed. "Unless you didn't want it to be a date."/p  
p style="font-family: -webkit-standard; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;""You already know the answer to that, Ally." Chase grinned. "So, your parents seem really nice."/p  
p style="font-family: -webkit-standard; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;""They seemed to really like you, as well. They were very thrilled to meet you, you know, they have been worried for a while, I would never find my happy ending here in Storybrooke, they are so afraid of holding me back." Emma explained./p  
p style="font-family: -webkit-standard; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;""So you do think we can be happy again?" Chase asked./p  
p style="font-family: -webkit-standard; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;""Yes, I think we could be. But we will have to take things slow, this time. We have both changed and I also have Henry to worry about now. I know he wants me to be happy, but I can't let him down again." She explained./p  
p style="font-family: -webkit-standard; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;""I understand, and I would like to try to make it up to you." Chase said, just as they arrived at his apartment building. They stopped before the door and looked at each other for a moment. Then, Chase cleared his throat./p  
p style="font-family: -webkit-standard; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;""I know we just agreed to take things slow, but do you think it would be very outrageous if I kissed you goodbye, now?" he asked carefully./p  
p style="font-family: -webkit-standard; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;""Kissing on the first date, Dr. Chase, that does sound a bit outrageous to me." She mocked and started giggling. "I guess it's your lucky day because I think I like outrageous." She moved closer to him./p  
p style="font-family: -webkit-standard; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;""When they were only inches apart, Chase cupped her cheek with his and and looked at her for a moment, taking in all her features, thinking just how much he missed her./p  
p style="font-family: -webkit-standard; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"Emma just looked right back into his eyes, lost in her own thoughts./p  
p style="font-family: -webkit-standard; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"Chase moved even closer, closing his eyes and softly brushing his lips to hers. When his lips met hers, her eyes fluttered shut and she responded almost immediately, softly leaning into the kiss./p  
p style="font-family: -webkit-standard; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"After a moment of moving in perfect sync, Chase softly brushed his tongue against her bottom lip, praying he was not going too far, but she willing opened her mouth and granted him entrance. Her hands moved to the back of his neck, pulling him in even closer, unwilling of ever letting him go. As their tongues moved together, Chase slipped his second arm around her waist, pulling her further towards him./p  
p style="font-family: -webkit-standard; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"They broke apart a few moments later, both desperate for air but unwilling to let go of one another. They stared into each other's eyes, still processing what had just happened./p  
p style="font-family: -webkit-standard; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"Emma gave him another soft peck on his lips before breaking their embrace and stating: "I should probably go. See you soon?" she asked hopefully./p  
p style="font-family: -webkit-standard; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;""Definitely" Chase grinned. He wanted to kiss her again, so badly, but he also knew he would probably not be able to keep his promise on taking things slow, if they continued kissing like that. He unlocked his door and went inside, as Emma was turning around, walking back to her own home./p 


End file.
